On my (Euro) Westfalia, which looks identical to the US models from the furniture point of view, I can reach to the fan by emptying
out the bottom kitchen cabinet and sticking in my elbow in the gap where the electrical leads and propane pipes go. If you do this
when the fan is on, you'll soon feel it hitting your fingers and you'll be able to determine whether it's hitting any debris. In my
case, it was hitting the speaker wiring installed by the DPO (Dear Present Owner).

Robin
90 Vanagon Atlantic TD

Doug Alcock wrote:

> >Thanks for listees responses to my question regarding my fridge
> >noise.  Some, however, indicate that this cooling fan noise is normal, some
> >say I should replace the fan.  Can anyone tell me the following:  when a
> >fridge is new does this fan make any noise?  Is there any clear difference
> >between a fan that is making a normal amount of noise and one that is
> >excessive?  I want to avoid pulling the fridge out and replacing the fan,
> >only to find out that the new one makes a similar noise.
>
> Hi Michael,
>
> My impression is that many would consider a brand new fan too noisy. I know that
> mine (hardly brand new) is definitely too noisy. I'll also note that the fan
> (new or old) IMHO is an incredibly cheesy looking piece of junk. It is an
> unshielded 2 blade plastic prop that looks like it belongs on the front of a
> kids wind-up airplane rather than as an integral part of a precision,
> German-engineered, 'portable pleasure palace'. If/when I replace mine it will be
> with a rather more serious (to say nothing of much quieter) fan that will move
> some serious air. Other posts in the past have mentioned 'Fridgmate?' and
> computer CPU fans. I wouldn't be looking for a stock replacement. That's my 2
> cents (Canadian) worth.
>
> Cheers,
>
> Doug Alcock
> '84 Westy "BlueBelle"
> Toronto, Canada